March 28, 2024

Heating up

Fire Chief Fry warns of dangers of space heaters in winter

When temperatures plummet, that means there’s one thing on the rise — the greater the risk of house fires.

According to Osceola Fire Chief Mike Fry, the main cause of house fires is space heaters and extension cords.

“Space heaters are horrible,” he said. “Everybody has them, but they’re just not safe. They draw too much power.”

Fry added, older houses just don’t have enough power to support numerous space heaters plugged into old outlets.

Fry mentioned, with overall fire safety, it’s also important to check furnace filters and smoke detectors to make sure they’re running correctly.

According to an Iowa Red Cross press release, this past year, the Iowa Red Cross helped more people affected by home fires than all other disasters combined.

Safety tips

If a person must use space heaters for their heat source during the frigid cold, here are some tips to keep safe.

• Select a heater with tip-over or overheat protection. A heater equipped with a tip-over switch will automatically shut off if it is tipped over accidentally.

• Give heaters their space. It’s important to position a portable space heater at least 3 feet away from furniture, window treatments, bedding, clothing, rugs and other combustible items.

• Plug the space heater directly into an outlet. If a person attaches an extension cord to the space heater, it increases the chance of overheating, fires and electrical shock injuries.

• Shut off the space heater when leaving it unattended. This can also be done when people go to sleep at night.

It is also recommended to put space heaters at a lower setting of heat and not run them for an extended period of time.

Outlets/extension cords

Fry has seen firsthand the dangers that can be wrought with space heaters. Last winter, the fire department responded to a house fire that had four or five space heaters plugged in to outlets.

Fry said there is a danger to the overuse of drop cords, extension cords and outlets.

The fire department also responded to another house fire last winter where there were two space heaters in one room, and they were both plugged into same outlet.

“They run hard when it gets cold, they don’t ever shut down,” Fry said. “That’s probably the main thing I see.”